care
noun
a state of mind in which one is troubled; worry, anxiety, or concern.
care
1 American
[kair]
/ kɛər /
noun
-
cares
plural
-
a state of mind in which one is troubled; worry, anxiety, or concern.
He was never free from care.
-
a cause or object of worry, anxiety, concern, etc..
A massage is an excellent way to forget your cares for a little while.
Their son has always been a heavy care to them.
-
serious attention; solicitude; heed; caution.
She devotes great care to her work.
-
the provision of what is needed for the well-being or protection of a person or thing.
He is under the care of a doctor.
With proper care, the watch will last a lifetime.
-
temporary keeping, as for the benefit of or until claimed by the owner.
He left his valuables in the care of friends.
Address my mail in care of the American Embassy.
-
grief; suffering; sorrow.
verb (used without object)
-
cares,
present (3rd person singular)
-
cared,
past participle, past
-
caring
present participle
-
to be concerned or solicitous; have thought or regard.
You can just tell she cares for people's feelings by the way she talks to them.
-
to be concerned or have a special preference (usually used in negative constructions).
I don't care where we go, I just want to get out of town for a bit.
-
to make provision or look out (usually followed byfor ).
Will you care for the children while I am away?
-
to have an inclination, liking, fondness, or affection (usually followed byfor ).
Would you care for dessert?
I don't care for him very much.
verb (used with object)
-
cares,
present (3rd person singular)
-
cared,
past participle, past
-
caring
present participle
-
to feel concern about.
He doesn't care what others say.
-
to wish; desire; like.
Would you care to dance?
verb phrase
idioms
-
take care,
-
be alert; be careful.
Take care that you don't fall on the ice!
-
take care of yourself; goodbye: used as an expression of parting.
-
-
take care of,
-
to watch over; be responsible for.
to take care of an invalid.
-
to deal with; attend to.
I'll take care of the bill, and you can go out and get the car started.
-
-
couldn't care less, could not care less; be completely unconcerned: Also could care less.
I couldn't care less whether she goes to the party or not.
CARE
2
American
[kair]
/ kɛər /
Or
Care
noun
care
1
British
/ kɛə /
verb
-
(when tr, may take a clause as object) to be troubled or concerned; be affected emotionally
he is dying, and she doesn't care
-
(intr; foll by for or about) to have regard, affection, or consideration (for)
he cares more for his hobby than his job
-
to have a desire or taste (for)
would you care for some tea?
-
to provide physical needs, help, or comfort (for)
the nurse cared for her patients
-
(tr) to agree or like (to do something)
would you care to sit down, please?
-
I am completely indifferent
noun
-
careful or serious attention
under her care the plant flourished
he does his work with care
-
protective or supervisory control
in the care of a doctor
-
(often plural) trouble; anxiety; worry
-
an object of or cause for concern
the baby's illness was her only care
-
caution
handle with care
-
Usual abbreviation: c/o. at the address of: written on envelopes
-
social welfare made the legal responsibility of a local authority by order of a court
CARE
2
British
/ kɛə /
acronym
-
Cooperative for American Relief Everywhere, Inc.; a federation of US charities, giving financial and technical assistance to many regions of the world
-
communicated authenticity, regard, empathy: the three qualities believed to be essential in the therapist practising client-centred therapy
care
More Idioms
Usage
Couldn't care less, a phrase used to express indifference, is sometimes heard as could care less, which ought to mean the opposite but is intended to be synonymous with the former phrase. Both versions are common mainly in informal speech.
Synonym Usage
To take care, pains, trouble (to do something) implies watchful, conscientious effort to do something exactly right. To take care implies the performance of one particular detail: She took care to close the cover before striking the match. To take pains suggests a sustained carefulness, an effort to see that nothing is overlooked but that every small detail receives attention: to take pains with fine embroidery. To take trouble implies an effort that requires a considerable amount of activity and exertion: to take the trouble to make suitable arrangements.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
caresimple
-
caressimple
-
have caredperfect
-
has caredperfect
-
am caringprogressive
-
are caringprogressive
-
is caringprogressive
-
have been caringperfect progressive
-
has been caringperfect progressive
Past
-
caredsimple
-
had caredperfect
-
was caringprogressive
-
were caringprogressive
-
had been caringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of care1
First recorded before 900; Middle English noun care “sadness, sorrow, grief,” Old English caru, cearu, cognate with Gothic kara, Old High German chara “lament”
Origin of CARE2
First recorded in 1945–50; shortening of C(ooperative for) A(merican) R(elief) E(verywhere)
Explanation
To care is to feel concern, and care is attention given, tending, or upkeep. If you care about how your garden grows, you will take care to water it often, remove weeds, and talk to your plants about the weather. Care can be a noun or a verb. As a noun, it originally had the sense of “sorrow, anxiety” or “serious mental attention,” and now means “oversight, protection.” If you have a fragile package, you might write "handle with care" on the box. As a verb, care means “to feel concern or interest” — as in, "If you care about your health you'll put down that cigarette!" If someone says she "couldn't care less," then she does not care at all.
Vocabulary lists containing care
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Thanking jury members for their "care and attention" during the trial, the judge added the council leader would be given unconditional bail until his sentencing hearing.
From BBC ● Sep. 21, 2026
These weekends felt harmless at first and, perhaps you paid your way by taking care of dinners, which could almost cost as much as $500 over the course of two days.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 21, 2026
"We don't care which side it is that's attacking," is the message I got loud and clear in Arabic from everyone here I spoke to.
From BBC ● Sep. 21, 2026
Power of attorney is set up by the principal — that is, the person who expects to need care and help with decision making as they get older.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 21, 2026
“How can we bring anything to God? What does He care for our little tricks and trinkets?”
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
"If large numbers of rescued dogs had entered adoption programmes, animal groups like us would know about them," said Kim Young-hwan, a representative of animal rights group CARE.
From Barron's ● Jun. 28, 2026
Other organisations to be suspended include CARE, Medico International and Medical Aid for Palestinians.
From BBC ● Dec. 30, 2025
Mr. Comer said the State Department’s Coordinator for Afghan Relocation, or CARE, is at the center of those efforts.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 21, 2023
At least one aid group, CARE, said that its team had been forced to briefly retreat from Kherson because of increased shelling and artillery attacks in the city.
From New York Times ● Jun. 8, 2023
So the next card I wrote was DAY CARE, which is what Bran and I called school.
From "Silent To The Bone" by E.L. Konigsburg
Mr. Ellison may have agreed to these terms because he cares less about the success of the news networks than he does its streaming business.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 21, 2026
But honestly, who cares about gas prices and grocery bills?
From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2026
"No one cares about the city," she charged, calling the waste management service "useless".
From Barron's ● Sep. 15, 2026
Rybakina's ascent to the top of the world rankings is already assured but she has made it clear that for all the prestige of being number one, winning titles is what she really cares about.
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026
“Who cares. The whole world will die someday and who cares if you had a bad breakfast?”
From "Everything Sad Is Untrue" by Daniel Nayeri
The results meant I was no closer to solving my tiredness problem, my partner pointed out, but I no longer cared.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026
The youngsters, estimated to be about one-and-a-half years old, appeared to be healthy and were being cared for at a zoo after their rescue, the ministry said in a statement.
From Barron's ● Sep. 11, 2026
Giving evidence in court, the teenager said: "I thought she cared about me."
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
That’s what was at the heart of what Marsh cared about.
From Salon ● Sep. 8, 2026
A subprime mortgage lender called Aames Financial went public, and no one at Oppenheimer particularly cared to express an opinion about it.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
She's part of the so-called sandwich generation, those in midlife who have to juggle caring responsibilities for old and young while often working, too.
From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026
They also do farmwork, like harvesting corn, herding sheep, caring for cows and chopping wood.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
An online fundraiser described Thakur as “a caring, loving, selfless, and generous young woman who gave so much of herself to others.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
Importantly, the doctors and other clinical staff caring for the patients did not know their vitamin D status, reducing the chance that this information could influence pain treatment.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 14, 2026
“You need to start caring about school again,” he says.
From "The Sea in Winter" by Christine Day
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
